National Research (NRC) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $365.48M
• Dividend Yield: 2.99%
• Average Volume (3M): 87.79K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 15.6
• Beta (1Y): 0.55
• Revenue Growth: -4.15%
• EPS Growth: -17.17%
• Country: US
• Employees: 368
• Sector: Healthcare
• Sector Strength: 58
• Industry: Medical - Healthcare Information Services
• EPS (TTM): 0.25
• Shares Outstanding: 22,785,421
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 82,889
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 87,792
• PEG Ratio: -2.26
• Price to Book (P/B): 12.91
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 35.17
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 2.54
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 1.61
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 11.08
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 5.41
• 1Y Price Target: N/A
• Price Target Upside: N/A
• Rating Consensus: N/A
• Number of Analyst Covering: 0

• Rating: 70 Outperform
• Price Target: $17.00 ▲(5.99%Upside)

NRC's overall stock score reflects strong corporate actions and reasonable valuation, tempered by financial risks from high leverage and challenges in revenue growth. Technical factors indicate short-term strength but potential overbought conditions.

National Research Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

National Research Corporation provides analytics and insights that facilitate measurement and enhancement of the patient and employee experience in the United States and Canada. Its portfolio of subscription-based solutions provides actionable information and analysis to healthcare organizations across a range of mission-critical, constituent-related elements, including patient experience, service recovery, care transitions, health risk assessments, employee engagement, reputation management, and brand loyalty. The company also offers market insights solutions that allow the tracking of awareness, perception, and consistency of healthcare brands; assessment of competitive differentiators; and enhanced segmentation tools to evaluate needs, wants, and behaviors of communities through real-time competitive assessments and enhanced segmentation tools. In addition, it provides experience solutions, such as patient and resident experience, workforce engagement, health risk assessments, transitions, and improvement tools. Further, the company offers health risk assessment solutions that enable clients to segment populations and manage care for those who are most at risk, engage individuals, enhance preventative care, and manage wellness programs; and transitions solutions, which enable organizations to identify and manage high-risk patients to reduce readmissions, enhance patient satisfaction and support safe care transitions. Additionally, it provides transparency solutions that allow healthcare organizations to share picture of their organization and ensure content informs in consumer decision-making; and governance solutions for not-for-profit hospital and health system boards of directors, executives, and physician leadership. The company serves integrated health systems, post-acute providers, and payer organizations. National Research Corporation was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska.

How the Company Makes Money

NRC generates revenue through a subscription-based model for its analytics and insights services, which are offered to hospitals, healthcare systems, and other healthcare providers. Key revenue streams include licensing fees for access to its software platforms, consulting services for healthcare performance improvement, and sales of its proprietary market research reports. Additionally, the company maintains strategic partnerships with healthcare organizations, which contribute to its earnings by expanding its client base and enhancing its service offerings.

National Research Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Solid profitability and cash generation capabilities, but challenges exist in revenue growth and high leverage. Efficient cost management supports profitability, yet declining revenue and a high debt load pose risks.

Income Statement

The company's income statement reveals moderate profitability with a net profit margin of 17.1% for TTM. However, there has been a decline in revenue and net income compared to previous periods, indicating potential challenges in maintaining growth. The gross profit margin of 59.2% and EBIT margin of 24.8% suggest efficient cost management, but shrinking revenue is a concern.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet shows a significant amount of debt with a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.2, indicating high leverage. The equity ratio of 21.9% is relatively low, suggesting limited equity buffer. Return on equity is 81.6%, driven by high leverage rather than strong equity growth, highlighting potential financial risk.

Cash Flow

The cash flow statement is strong, with a positive free cash flow and an operating cash flow to net income ratio of 1.2, indicating good cash generation relative to earnings. Despite this, free cash flow has decreased compared to the previous period, reflecting challenges in maintaining cash flow growth.

Breakdown
TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement		Total Revenue
141.30M	143.06M	148.58M	151.57M	147.95M	133.28M
	Gross Profit
83.62M	86.13M	92.56M	94.52M	95.60M	84.09M
	EBIT
35.03M	35.19M	40.05M	46.54M	50.27M	42.68M
	EBITDA
41.21M	41.31M	45.98M	51.83M	56.66M	50.78M
	Net Income Common Stockholders
24.21M	24.78M	30.97M	31.80M	37.47M	37.26M
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
25.03M	4.23M	6.65M	25.03M	54.36M	34.69M
	Total Assets
130.46M	132.54M	122.44M	130.46M	157.54M	133.42M
	Total Debt
22.18M	62.68M	38.96M	22.18M	26.55M	30.61M
	Net Debt
-2.85M	58.45M	32.30M	-2.85M	-27.81M	-4.08M
	Total Liabilities
58.43M	107.88M	73.48M	58.43M	72.20M	69.11M
	Stockholders Equity
72.03M	31.28M	48.95M	72.03M	85.34M	64.31M
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
14.94M	19.18M	22.33M	26.43M	40.83M	36.65M
	Operating Cash Flow
29.23M	34.63M	38.11M	36.27M	46.34M	40.64M
	Investing Cash Flow
-19.13M	-20.28M	-15.78M	-9.84M	-8.51M	-3.72M
	Financing Cash Flow
-9.30M	-16.76M	-40.71M	-55.58M	-18.16M	-15.50M

National Research Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 16.04
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Negative
• STOCH: Negative

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For NRC, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 16.04 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 14.54, above the 50-day MA of 13.00, and below the 200-day MA of 16.67, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of 0.87 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 75.99 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 87.48 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for NRC.

National Research Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
VMD	75 Outperform	$262.83M	22.29	9.79%	―	19.97%	17.21%
NRC	70 Outperform	$365.48M	15.57	72.68%	2.99%	-4.15%	-17.17%
TCMD	60 Neutral	$228.76M	14.86	8.12%	―	5.96%	-43.83%
Sector *	54 Neutral	$5.37B	3.26	-45.10%	3.30%	16.81%	0.02%
HUMA	42 Neutral	$367.63M	―	-257.38%	―	―	-17.92%
CRVS	41 Neutral	$323.11M	―	-100.13%	―	―	-71.53%

National Research Corporate Events

National Research Shareholders Approve 2025 Incentive Plan

On May 7, 2025, National Research Corporation’s shareholders approved the 2025 Omnibus Incentive Plan, which replaces the 2006 Equity Incentive Plan and the 2004 Non-Employee Director Stock Plan. During the same annual meeting, Donald M. Berwick and Stephen H. Lockhart were elected as directors, KPMG LLP’s appointment as the independent registered public accounting firm was ratified, and the compensation of the company’s named executive officers was approved.

NRC Health Announces Q1 Results and Share Repurchase

On April 28, 2025, NRC Health announced its first quarter results, highlighting a sequential increase in total recurring contract value, expansion of its sales force, and a new share repurchase program. The company also declared a quarterly cash dividend and completed a prior share repurchase program. These developments reflect NRC Health’s strategic focus on revenue growth and shareholder returns, with significant contributions from its leadership team.

National Research Appoints New Financial Officer

On April 18, 2025, National Research Corporation’s board appointed Michael D. Hays as the principal financial officer while retaining his role as the principal executive officer until Trent Green assumes the CEO position on June 1, 2025. Additionally, Jordan N. Freeman was appointed as the Chief Accounting Officer, with no changes in compensation for these roles. These appointments are part of the company’s strategic leadership transition.

National Research Approves New Executive Compensation Program

On April 3, 2025, National Research Corporation’s Compensation and Talent Committee approved a new compensation program for its executive officers, excluding Trent Green and Michael D. Hays. This decision aligns with the strategic changes following Trent Green’s appointment as CEO, effective June 1, 2025. The new compensation package for Helen L. Hrdy, Chief Operating Officer, includes a grant of 100,000 shares of common stock with specific restrictions, a cash bonus, and a severance arrangement. Similar adjustments were made for Andrew Monnich, Chief Corporate Development Officer, while Michael D. Hays’ compensation remained unchanged.